Elect Me Tees achieves victory with personalized Uncle Sam postcards

Elect Me Tees makes custom T-shirts and apparel, a common business that could get lost in the direct mail shuffle.

However, the company's ingenious use of personalization in a postcard sent to a colleague got my attention. The front of the company's Uncle Sam-inspired postcard mailer features pictures of sample hats, T-shirts and sweatshirts, all with her last name on them — for example, “Faulkner for President.”

It successfully presented her with multiple apparel ideas, along with what the finished product would look like. The company wisely included pricing, product and sizing information on the back of the card – making it very easy to place an order.

This is an excellent example of using personalized marketing to create compelling visuals that inspire a purchase decision. Most marketers limit personalization to “Dear Stephan” (and half the time that's not even right).